Tuesday, April 03, 2007

My March 31st net worth was about $327,000. That is an increase of about 3.5% from last month. Here's what got me there:

Total Inflows $21,232.16Boy do I wish I had that every month! That includes a bonus and tax refund, as well as interest and employer matching in my 401k.

Outflows Business expense -326.22 (reimbursement of expenses from earlier in the year)Charity 1.00Clothing 239.77Dining: --Breakfast 68.44--Dinner 219.52--Groceries 452.94--Liquor 74.23--Lunch 106.55 Total Dining 921.68 (this is way over budget due to all the extra groceries I've been buying for my mom's 3-week visit)Education 40.63Entertainment 5.41Gifts Given 77.93Home Repair 55.56Household: --Laundry 33.30--New Home Decor 3,269.49--Household - Other 553.24Total Household 3,856.03 (I bought some major furniture this month, as well as smaller household items like towels and silverware. Hopefully my expenses in this category will be MUCH smaller from now on!)Medical 97.42Misc 1,034.90 (I will explain why this is so high in another post later this week)Total Payroll Taxes, Self 5,979.38Subscriptions 59.51Travel 85.00Utilities 322.32 (this is higher than my monthly average, since the gas bill only comes every other month.)Housing 1810.27 (this is still artificially inflated due to a property tax abatement that hasn't kicked in yet.)

Total Outflows 14,260.59

Net Inflows/Outflows 6,971.57

The rest of the change in my net worth was due to my 401k savings and slight gains in investments since last month.

I was wondering if I should change my year-end goal, as $350,000 is seeming very reachable. But I think I'll let it stand for now. I won't have any more big bumps in my income this year, and even if I stop spending so much on decorating my apartment my regular monthly savings won't be very high until I get a raise again. And who knows where the stock market is going. But I'll take a look at that goal again in June.

10 comments:

Anonymous
said...

Just curious, what was the $1 in charity for? That amount is so immaterial its surprising you even take the time to note that you spent it. Did you know that the upper middle class and the middle rich donate half as much to charity as do the middle class and below?

I pretty much dumped this expense list straight out of Quicken, and yes, this month I didn't donate anything to charity other than $1 I gave to a street musician. I'm just anal about recording EVERYTHING, but for tax purposes, I suppose that doesn't even count as a charitable donation, and I believe as of this year I'd need a receipt to claim it anyway.

I think it's great that you keep track of everything. It's not for everyone, but it's better in my opinion than not having a clue about where your money goes. Keep your eye on your goal and you'll have no problem reaching it.

Bronx chica..I love how you did your march 2007 expenses! I started writing and comparing each month this year especially after losing my job! I have been back on my feet for 3 weeks. It is nice to see how a woman has a relationship with her money as Suze Orman says!

About Me

My name is Madame X, and I am a 40-something single woman living in Brooklyn, NY. I write about how much money I make, what I spend it on, how much I save, how I budget, my home-buying experiences, my financial goals and ambitions, my thoughts on class and what it means to be rich or poor, and anything else that relates to money. (More about me here, here, and here.)If you take any of my advice, do so at your own risk as I am not really qualified to give it. If you have advice to share, please do, and many thanks!Ad proceeds from this site are donated to worthy causes.